"I have learned to be content whatever the
circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to
have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and
every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in
need." Philippians 4:11-13

"A happy heart makes the face cheerful." Proverbs
15:13

"A cheerful heart has a continual feast." Proverbs
15:15

"A cheerful heart is good medicine; but a crushed
spirit dries up the bones." Proverbs 17:22

One of the divinest secrets of a happy life—is the art of
extracting comfort and sweetness from every circumstance. We
must develop the habit of looking on the bright side. It is a
magic-wand whose power exceeds that of any fabled magician's to change all
things into blessings. Those who take cheerful views, find happiness
everywhere; and yet how rare is the habit! The multitude prefer to walk on
the dark side of the paths of life.

There are those who take to gloom—as a bat
to darkness, or as a vulture to carrion! They would rather nurse a
misery—than cherish a joy. They always find the dark side of
everything, if there is a dark side to be found. They appear to be
conscientious grumblers, as if it were their duty to extract some essence
of misery from every circumstance. The weather is either too cold
or too hot; too wet or too dry. They never find anything to their taste.
Nothing escapes their criticism. They find fault with the food on the
table, with the bed in which they lie, with the railroad-train or
steamboat on which they travel, with the government and its
officials, with merchant and workman—in a word, with the world at large and
in detail.

They are chronic grumblers. Instead of being
content in the state in which they are—they have learned to be discontented,
no matter how happy their lot! If they had been placed in the Garden of
Eden—they would have discovered something with which to find fault! Their
wretched habit empties life of all possible joy—and turns every cup
to gall.

On the other hand, there are rare people who always take
cheerful views of life. They look at the bright side. They find some joy and
beauty everywhere. If the sky is covered with clouds—they will point out to
you the splendor of some great cloud-bank piled up like mountains of glory.
When the storm rages, instead of fears and complaints—they find an exquisite
pleasure in contemplating its grandeur and majesty. In the most faulty
picture—they see some bit of beauty which charms them. In the most
disagreeable person—they discover some kindly trait or some bud of promise.
In the most disheartening circumstances, they find something for which to be
thankful, some gleam of cheer breaking in through the thick gloom.

When a ray of sunlight streamed through a crack in the
shutter, and made a bright patch on the floor in the darkened room—the
little dog rose from his dark corner, and went and lay down in the one sunny
spot; and these cheerful people live in the same philosophical way. If there
is one beam of cheer or hope anywhere in their lot—they will find it! They
have a genius for happiness. They always make the best out of circumstances.
They are happy as travelers. They are contented as boarders.
Their good nature never fails. They take a cheerful view of every
perplexity. Even in sorrow, their faces are illumined, and songs come
from the chambers where they weep. Such people have a wondrous ministry in
this world. They are like apple trees when covered with blossoms, pouring a
sweet fragrance all around them.

It may be worth while to linger a little—on the
philosophy of living which produces such results.

Some people are born with sunny dispositions, with large
hopefulness and joyfulness, and with eyes for the bright side of life.
Others are naturally disposed to gloom. Physical causes have, no
doubt, much to do with the discontent of many lives. Dyspepsia or a
disordered liver, is responsible for much bad temper, low spirits and
melancholy; and yet, while there is this predisposition in temperament on
the one hand toward hopefulness, and on the other toward depression and
gloom, it is still largely a matter of culture and habit, for which
we are individually responsible. Like the apostle Paul, we can train
ourselves to take cheerful views of life, and to extract contentment and
enjoyment from any circumstances.

"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it
again—Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4. This is clearly a most important part of
Christian culture. Joyfulness is everywhere commended as a Christian duty.
Discontent is a most detestable fault. Morbidness is a sin. Fretfulness
grieves God. It tells of unbelief. It destroys the soul's peace. It
disfigures the beauty of Christian character. It not only makes us soured
and unhappy in our own hearts—but its influence on others is bad. We have no
right to project the gloom of our discontent—over any other life. Our
attitude is to be ever toward joy. There is nothing so depressing in its
effect upon others, as morbidness!

Also, for the sake of those among whom we live, and upon
whose lives we are forever unconsciously either casting shadows, or
pouring sunshine—we should seek to learn this Christian art of
contentment.

What are some of the elements of this divine
philosophy of living?

One is patient submission to all the ills and hardships
of life, which are unavoidable. No person's lot is perfect. No
mortal ever yet found a set of circumstances without some unpleasant
feature. Sometimes it is in our power—to modify the discomforts. Our trouble
is often of our own making! Much of it needs only a little energetic
activity on our part, to remove it. We are fools, if we live on amid ills
and hardships, which a reasonable industry would change to comforts, or even
pleasures!

But if there are unavoidable ills or burdens,
which we cannot by any energy of our own remove or lighten—they must be
submitted to without murmuring. We have a saying that, "What cannot be
cured—must be endured." But the very phrasing tells of an
unyielding heart! There is submission to the inevitable—but no
reconciliation to it!

True contentment does not chafe under disappointments
and losses—but accepts them, becomes reconciled to them, and
at once looks about to find something good in them. This is the secret of
happy living! And when we come to think of it—how senseless it is to
struggle against the inevitable! Discontent helps nothing. It never removes
a hardship, or makes a burden any lighter, or brings back a vanished
pleasure. One never feels better, for complaining. It only makes him
wretched!

A starling in a cage struggles against its fate,
flies against the wire walls, and beats upon them in efforts to be
free—until its wings are all bruised and bleeding! A canary is shut
in another cage, accepts the restraint, perches itself upon its bar and
sings. Surely, the canary is wiser than the starling!

We would also get far along toward contentment, if we
ceased to waste time dreaming over unattainable earthly good. Only a few
people can be great or rich; the mass must always remain in ordinary
circumstances. Suppose that each of the forty million people in the world,
were millionaires; who could be found to do the work that must be
done? Or suppose that all were great poets. Imagine the forty million
people in the world, all writing poetry! Who would write the prose? A little
serious reflection will show that the world needs only a very few great and
conspicuous lives—while it needs millions for its varied industries, its
plain duties, its hard toil.

Also, a large amount of our discontent arises from our
envy of those who have what we have not. There are many who lose all the
comfort of their own lives—in coveting the better things that some
other one possesses! How foolish!

There are several considerations which ought to modify
this miserable feeling of envy, which brings so much bitterness. If
we could know the secret history of the life that we envy for its
splendor and prosperity, perhaps we would not exchange for it our lowlier
life, with its plain circumstances. Certain it is, that contentment is not
so apt to dwell in palaces or on thrones—as in the homes of
the humble. The tall peaks rise nearer the skies—but the winds smite
them more fiercely!

Then why should I hide my one talent in the
earth—because it is not ten? Why should I make my life a failure in
the place allotted to me, while I sit down and dream over unattainable
things? Why should I miss my one golden opportunity, however
small—while I envy some other one—what seems his greater opportunity?
Countless people make themselves wretched—by vainly trying to grasp far-away
joys, while they leave untouched and despised—the numberless little joys and
bright bits of happiness, which lie close to their hand.

As one has written, "Stretching out his hand to catch the
stars—man forgets the flowers at his feet—so beautiful, so
fragrant, so multitudinous and so various." The secret of happiness lies in
extracting pleasure from the things we have—while we enter no mad,
vain chase after impossible dreams!

Another way to train ourselves to cheerful views of
life—is resolutely to refuse to be frightened at shadows, or even to
see trouble where there is none. Half or more of the things that most
worry us—have no existence, but in a disordered imagination. Many
things that in the dim distance look like shapes of peril, when we
draw near to them—melt into harmless shadows, or even change into forms of
friendliness! Much of the gloomy tinge that many people see on everything,
is caused by the color of the glasses through which they look. We
look out through our

blue-glasses,
and then wonder what makes everything blue! The greater part of our
discontent, is caused by some imaginary trouble which never really
comes. We can do much toward curing ourselves of fretting and worrying—by
refusing to be fooled by a foreboding imagination.

We also need to learn—ever to make the best of things.
There will always be cloudy days. No one can live without meeting
discomforts, disappointments and hardships. No wisdom, no industry of ours
can eliminate from our experience, all that is disagreeable or painful. But
shall we allow the one discordant note in the grand symphony—to mar
for us all the noble music? Shall we permit the one discomfort in our
home—to cast a cloud over all its pleasures and embitter all its joys?
Shall we not seek for the bright side? There is really sunshine
enough in the darkest day—to make any ordinary mortal happy—if he
only has eyes to see it!

It is marvelous what a trifling thing will give
joy to a truly grateful heart. Mr. Park in the bleak desert, found
the greatest delight in a single tuft of moss growing in the sand. It
saved him from despair and from death, and filled his soul with joy and
hope. There is no lot in life so dreary—that it has not at least its
one little patch of beauty; or its one wee flower looking up out of the
dreariness, like a smile of God.

Even if the natural eye can see no brightness in the
cloud, the faith of the Christian knows that there is good in
everything, for the child of God. There are reasons, no doubt, why no
perfect happiness can be found in this world. If there were no thorns
in our pillow here on earth—would we care to pillow our heads on the
bosom of divine love? Our Father makes our nest rough—to drive us to
seek the warmer, softer nest, prepared for us in his own love.

To each one who is truly in Christ, and who really loves
God—there is a promise of good out of all things. "We know that all
things work together for the good of those who love God; to those who are
called according to His purpose." Romans 8:28. There is a wondrous
chemistry in the divine providence, which out of the commingling
of life's strange elements—always produces blessing! Thus faith's
vision sees good in all things, however dark they may appear—and
ill in nothing! We need but living faith in God's love and care to
us—to enable us to take a cheerful view of any experience.

There is another purely Christian element in the
culture of contentment which must not be overlooked. The more the
heart becomes engaged with God, and its affections enchained about him—the
less is it disturbed by the little roughnesses and hardships of
earth. Things that fret childhood, have no power to break the peace
of manhood. As we grow into higher spiritual manhood, and become more
and more filled with Christ—we shall rise above the power of earth's
discontents! We shall be happy even amid trials and losses,
amid discomforts and disappointments, because our life is hid
with Christ in God—and we have food to eat of which the world knows
not!

Thus we may train ourselves away from all gloomy and
despondent habits and experiences, toward cheerfulness and hope. The lesson,
well learned, will repay our greatest efforts! It will bring some new
pleasure into every moment. It will paint beauty for us—on the
dreariest desert. It will plant flowers for us—along every
step of the rugged road. It will bring music for us—out of every
sighing wind and wailing storm. It will fill the darkest night with
star-beams! It will make us sunny-hearted Christians—pleasing God, and
blessing the world!